USU Men’s Hoops suffers first conference loss of the season, falling to CSU 84-76
Utah State entered the “Spectrum Magic” game Jan. 21 looking for its 12th straight victory and another feather in its tournament resume cap. But the streak, and whatever magic there was that came with it, was ruptured by a driving Ram horn, as USU fell 84 to 76 in its second straight game against Colorado State.
“You can tell they took the loss personally,” said junior forward Alphonso Anderson. “They just out-toughed us tonight.”
The Aggies lacked the defensive intensity needed to keep a dynamic Ram offense from getting what they wanted, Colorado State managed to shoot 25-50, (50 percent) from the field. After being tied at 56 with 6:45 to play, USU gave up 28 points down the stretch.
“Tough night for the Aggies. I thought Colorado State played a great game in every way, shape, and form,” head coach Craig Smith said. “We just couldn’t guard them…They just made a lot of big-time plays.”
The offense struggled as well. The Aggies failed to move the ball and get open shots and were just 8 of 31 (25.8 percent) from beyond the arc as a consequence. Trying to keep the pace down the stretch, they missed five second-half free throws, including the front end of two one-and-ones.
“They made it difficult for us on the offensive end,” Smith said. “I thought we took the easy way out quite frankly, not sure we worked and grinded to get better shots. I thought we took the first shot available too many times.”
Contrary to the final product, USU started out the game hot, hitting seven of its first nine shots, to jump out to a 19-9 lead with 14:13 to play. Junior Neemias Queta — who finished with 13 points and five rebounds — had nine quick points, including a Kareem Abdul-Jabar-like fake hook and scoop for the bucket.
But the visiting Rams charged back and then some, going on an 18-2 run to lead 27-21 with 8:00 left in the half.
“We came out and we played hard,” Anderson said. “But I feel like we got relaxed at that point and we can’t do that.” especially with a team like that, they can score in bunches.”
Leading the Ram’s offensive charge was center Dishon Thomas, who hit three of his four first half three-point attempts, forcing Queta out to the perimeter to defend his shot. This left the paint unattested, and CSU took advantage, scoring 12 first-half points in the paint.
They were getting in the interior and we struggled to keep them in front of us,” Anderson said. “That led to layups and open threes and they just broke us down.”
Looking out of synch for a good portion of the half, the Aggies hit just five of their final 19 shots. But a gutsy effort that included five offensive rebounds and nine made free throws kept USU down just two at the half, 37-35.
USU quickly reclaimed the lead to start the second half with back-to-back midrange buckets from junior Justin Bean and freshman Rollie Worster. The Aggies found themselves in a foul-filled dog fight for much of the half.
Knotted at 53 with 7:39 to play, Anderson hit a three to give the Aggies a lead, and it looked like the Aggies could get rolling. But CSU had other things in mind, and Isaiah Stevens — who finished with game-high 18 points, eight assists and eight rebounds — got fouled on a three-point attempt moments later.
“Fonz made a big three at the top of the key to put us three,” Smith said. “And then we come down and we foul a three-point shooter.”
That sparked a 10-0 Ram run, putting them in the driver’s seat, up 63-56 with 5:17 to play. USU tried to claw back, with a Queta hook shot cutting the lead to five, but CSU managed to respond to everything the Aggies were doing and kept them at arm’s length.
With minutes left in the game, Miller, Worster and freshman Steven Ashworth all hit three-pointers to keep the magic alive, but the Rams hit 11 of 12 free throws in the final two minutes and held the lead.
“We were able to get a good flurry going there down the stretch,” Smith said. “But obviously it was too little too late.”